That’s a big deal for the workers who make this stuff in Muskegon.
A few months ago we wrote about the efforts of a Michigan chemical manufacturer to get the pigment it produces, which gives road markings their distinctive yellow color, covered by its state’s Buy America laws.
Today, we’ve got some good news for the workers at the factory just outside of Muskegon: Buy America in Michigan will now apply to their product.
The “Buy America” policy for yellow pavement pigment is included in Section 309 of Michigan’s FY 2025-26 Transportation Budget, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law on Tuesday. Here’s the language:
Notwithstanding any other law, a state contract for a pavement marking project or for the purchase of materials for a pavement marking project must include in the contract a requirement that in any yellow water-based paint product procured all yellow pigments permanently incorporated in the material must be manufactured in the United States according to USMCA rules of origin.
That’s not for nothing for the more than a hundred skilled and unionized workers who make this stuff in western Michigan: As we outlined in our earlier article, chemical manufacturing in the United States faces stiff import competition, almost entirely driven by China, where production has ramped up in step with its battery industry and automotive sector. Chinese chemical companies receiving substantial direct and indirect government subsidies, and enjoy relatively lax environmental labor regulations, all of which increase their competitiveness.
And what that means (for specific segments of the chemical industry like pigment) is that almost all the road markings in the United State are made with imports. Michigan is only one state, but this budget has nearly $2 billion for state and local road repairs. That means the procurement market for pigment is not small.
There is an effort to include coverage for pigment in federal Buy America laws underway. Congress is preparing to reauthorize spending on surface transportation projects next year, and a bill from members of Michigan’s House of Representatives delegation led by Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-MI-03) and Rep. Tom Barrett (R-MI-07) proposes that federally aided procurement give a preference to American-made pigment too. The surface transportation reauthorization has a long way to go, and we’ll keep an eye on this as it progresses.
In the meantime: Good job by Michigan’s lawmakers. You can read more about the budget signed in Lansing here.